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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26642674">Only Human (Are We Not?)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KryOnBlock/pseuds/KryOnBlock'>KryOnBlock</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(kind of??), Ambiguous/Open Ending, Dream Smp, Family Dynamics, Fantasy, Friendship, Gen, I guess???, If you want to think about it that way, Jschlatt is not evil he just wanted to be a real (boy) human, L'Manburg Election, Lore - Freeform, Minecraft players mechanics, Mostly focuses on Jschlatt &amp; Technoblade tbh, Slight Body Dysphoria, Spoilers for the L'manberg elections, The Elections, Traitor Technoblade, but techno is out of fucks to give to like rip, dream appear like one (1) time, only to be his dramatic self, platonic this is ALL platonic, references to MCM, slight angst, the slight body dysphoria mostly refers to not being human anymore lmao</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:01:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,863</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26642674</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KryOnBlock/pseuds/KryOnBlock</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Cursed aren't supposed to be able to turn back into humans. It was impossible, nobody had heard the contrary; Technoblade had already given up on the idea of someday being a person.</p><p>When he joins the Dream SMP to help his friends, he may have to reconsider if he did give up in the end.</p><p>-----------<br/>AKA:<br/>Technoblade is tired of being a pig, Jschlatt is no longer a goat and this is all an excuse to write possible, maybe technotraitor.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dave | Technoblade &amp; Jschlatt, Dave | Technoblade &amp; Wilbur Soot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>350</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Only Human (Are We Not?)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>It is 3 AM in the morning, i have classes at 7 AM and i have not slept properly in like a week.<br/>I started getting heavily into techno content during the quarentine, and now that he joined the SMP and there is all this possible lore and drama (techno's responses to when they ask him if hes a traitor got me looking intently lmao) BOY AM I STOCKED!!!!<br/>To preface this, I have not written (like acutally written something properly) in half a year or more. English is not my first language.</p><p>Also, i tried to explain the best i could in-context the Lore(TM) but there will be some explanations (And rambles!!) at the end notes. </p><p>Hope u enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>
  <span>Technoblade almost can’t remember the first time he saw Jschlatt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Officially he met him in the Minecraft Monday tournament, but truthfully he has always known him peripherally, from the corner of his eye in someplace distant. They never talked, just casually nodded at each other, a mark of respect as they both recognized the curse in the other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He remembers the tournament, finally meeting the goat he has seen around so many times before. His name was big in certain circles, and Techno would be lying if he said he wasn't in for the clout. The competition passed by in a blur, the adrenaline and want for the money too much for them to properly talk. Once they had received the money they had gone to a secluded place, sitting in the stairs of a platform, each one nursing a cold drink.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno can almost see himself there, the afternoon blending into the night as they both finally got to breathe after all that had happened. They were sitting in silence, contemplative as they both knew what was linking them, apart from the money they had just won.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How long?” Asked Schlatt after a while, eyes unfocused as he stared towards where all the players were mingling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“5 years, more or less” Techno answered, already knowing what the other was referring to. He stared at his hands, flexing them and watching the muscles work, hearing Schlatt hiss in distaste.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yikes. How young were you? You are like, barely an adult” Schlatt laughed at his scowl, ruffling his head and watching with a smile how techno tried to keep his crown from falling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m old enough, fuck you. You are only like, what, four years my senior?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey! Don’t talk to me like that! I’m your elder, respect me” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno scoffed, smiling as he relaxed against the stairs. He could see the other players slowly vacating the server, saying their final goodbyes for the week. He stared at Schlatt by the corner of the eye, not daring to ask his question. By the marks on his horns and how confident the other holds himself, Techno wouldn’t be surprised to know that the goat had gotten cursed as a child. Maybe he was born like this, he thought apathetically, staring at the drink in his hands; although he had never met a born-one, he had heard about them. Of course, it was way more probable to get cursed into an animal than being born one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Does…” He cut himself out, seeing how Schlatt had turned to see him, and gulped, continuing hesitantly “Does it ever get easier? I mean…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, don’t worry I get it.” Schlatt interrupted him, not unkindly, downing the rest of his drink in one go. “It kind of gets better, okay? Don’t worry about it, the discomfort does go away with the years but… You know, the itch will always be there.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Itch?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know, the memories of actually being human and not…” He brought up his hand, grimacing as he moved the hooves “Whatever furry hell this is”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...Oh…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t sound so sad now! There are benefits to being a talking and anthropomorphized animal you know?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Like…?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I can suplex anyone into the ground, even though I look like a twig” He winked, finally causing Techno to erupt into laughter at the mental image of tiny Schlatt picking anyone and just slamming them into the ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“See?! Not everything is bad; us Cursed have to stick together, you know?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Cursed? That's, That's how we are called?” He managed to ask between guffaws, erupting into laughter again when he saw Schlatt grimace.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, well apparently being cursed into not being human anymore can get too complicated for normal people, so we are called Cursed… Since you know… someone cursed us…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wow, originality 10/10”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Schlatt stood up, dusting his legs and smiling at the pig, night shrouding him in darkness. Yet, even as the horizontal pupils stared straight through him, Techno only felt comfortable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know it. See you around kid?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, see you around Jschlatt”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They kept in contact after the competition, talking to each other in passing, occasionally meeting to hang out and talk. It felt nice, Techno had to admit the fact of having someone with whom to talk about being Cursed; someone who could understand his struggle, why he felt the way he felt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Schlatt then introduced him to other Cursed he knew, Schlatt even introduced him to one of his best friends, Wilbur. And don’t get him wrong, his friends were perfect in every way and he loved to hang out with them but, with Schlatt it was… Different. He was almost like a mentor to him, he no longer had to figure things out alone on his own, now he had someone who he could turn to when in doubt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But slowly, ever so slowly, Schlatt started to turn away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He would be busier and busier, looking tired and haggard each time they met; he would start not returning his calls, not answering his text, slowly distancing himself. And techno knew it didn’t happen to only him because some of their friends asked him about Schlatt; if he was doing okay, what was up with him, why wasn’t he going into the SMPs, did he know anything?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone knew something was, not wrong but different with him, and nobody could figure out what. Traves would look worriedly after him, Wilbur appearing sad each time they mentioned the goat, and so on.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Techno pressed Schlatt, when he insisted on asking what was happening, the business goat would only smile, tiredly but determined, and wave his worries away, insisting he was busy researching something. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry Tech, it’s something good… Believe me, it’s going to change everything” Techno tried making him talk about his little project, what was he talking about; but Schlatt only smiled mysteriously and winked, before leaving.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And, well, he tried but once he saw there wasn’t any form to get him to talk about it he let it be. He stopped asking, and would instead talk about trivial things, would let the other have his space and so it began. When Schlatt said he was busy, he let him be and turned his attention to other projects, hoping the goat would get back to him at one point.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After a few months, before techno could figure it out, he had lost all contact with Jschlatt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had changed his communicator ID, nobody could tell him about the goat nor what he could be up to. After a week of intense search, he gave up, knowing that Jschlatt was probably occupied in that secret project he was working on and left it be. The other would know how to find him if ever need be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And so, life continued on.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He joined new SMPs, met new people, made new wars, conquered new places. Life continued, not waiting for him nor anyone else. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He made more friends, he met some of his best friends; he joined the Minecraft Championships.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Life was good.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Big remark on the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Was.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno sighed, placing his hooves on his face, feeling his crown starting to fall and not even bothering to correct it, too occupied trying to process what he just heard.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, let’s recap because I'm not sure I understand this… You are telling me you decided to hold elections, to confirm the power you already had? Even though you had just become President and everyone agreed with you being president?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“When you put it like that-” Wilbur grimaced and Techno sighed, holding his other hand up and interrupting him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hold up, I'm not finished. You held elections when you literally had no reason to, told people of your secret plan to automatically become president, antagonized the majority of your allies; convinced Dream, the owner of the server and one of the most stubborn people ever, to unban someone he didn’t want in the server, let ANY people register to run for president without any kind of guidelines, didn’t obligate people to vote AND, AND let people make political underhand deals, which gave them the right to banish you two from your own country, that you made?” Tommy and Wilbur kept in silence, both grimacing, “And now, Just now! I am hearing this?!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“When you put it like that it sounds kinda silly”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Kind of silly?!?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, you weren’t supposed to know in the first place!” Wilbur snapped back, not caring how Tommy paled and made cutting motions behind techno.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, you weren’t planning on telling me or Phil about the three wars you had… In less than 2 months?” Techno asked, in a very calm tone, as he harshly gripped the ax handle Tommy had given to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We were managing just fine! We didn’t need you or Phil to come to help us!” Wilbur answered, talking over the muttered “the help actually would have been great” from Tommy. “And, how I’m supposed to trust you!? You never intervened before!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno glared at him and sighed, looking up at the ceiling asking for patience, because if God gave him strength his dumbasses friends would die; he gathered his patience back while Tommy convinced Wilbur in letting him help them (It wasn’t even an option the not helping, because he was determined to finish this stupid war and bring the both of them by the ear to Phil).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After some tortuous minutes of Tommy begging Wilbur to let Techno help them, (and then, when that didn't work; manipulating Wilbur into letting him help), the three boys gathered around a crafting table and started figuring out what to do. Techno let them figure out the details, as he stared distractedly at the dog who was standing by their refuge’s door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you think, techno?” Techno blinked, snapping back into reality and looking at the others in confusion. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I said, do you think negotiating with Schlatt for a one day visa would work? Since, you know, I managed to convince a Superior to visit the server” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah that could wo- Wait, you said Schlatt?” Techno looking at Tommy in surprise. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah? He was the one to get banned, you know?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“. . .”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wilbur, did you seriously not tell Techno that Jschlatt visited the server?” Tommy turned around towards Wilbur, looking as annoyed as Techno felt at that moment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uhhh… In my defense, I was busy and I thought you had told him” Wilbur said, looking awkwardly at Techno, knowing how if he wasn’t here to help them he would have choked Wilbur to death by now.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As Tommy and Wilbur got into another fight, bickering furiously under the waning sun of the afternoon, Techno closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to remember the calming methods Phil taught him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>They are practically your brothers Techno, you can’t kill them even if they are annoying little shits and forget telling you about literally EVERYTHING important</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fine, this was gonna be totally and utterly fine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This was Absolutely Not Fine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno stared at Jschlatt through his iron helmet, the wood handle of the ax in his grip practically creaking from how much force he was applying. He could hear Tommy and Wilbur arguing with him, Quackity intervening with mocking remarks every time or so.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Maybe if Techno wasn’t so shocked he would have made some witty quip, but the only thing he could do was stare at what he supposed was Schlatt. He didn’t even notice how some people started slowly backing away as they saw his expression, his grip in the ax probably not helping much.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno was just… In shock.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In front of him, instead of the small white goat he was used to, was a tall grown man, with the biggest horns he had ever seen, barely covered by the hair. If it wasn’t for how his fingers looked blackish towards the tips and his horizontal pupils, Techno would have denied the person in front of him being Schlatt. It was just… So different. Techno didn’t know how to react, besides standing there and glaring at the guy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How… How had this happened? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Cursed weren’t supposed to be able to go back to humans, Schlatt wasn't supposed to be a human, to be standing there in a business suit and stroking a (very ugly to be honest) beard, and have fingers and be able to wear suits comfortably and… and…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno followed Tommy and Wilbur back to the base, acting almost in automatic, not registering any word they directed to him nor his own answers. It all felt blank, everything as if behind a thick glass barrier. It probably was the shock, his inner voice quietly murmured, as he took the potatoes sprouts and went down to start making a farm, the old familiarity helping him calm down.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(In one moment he questioned Wilbur, asking when Schlatt had… become human, again. Wilbur had shrugged, told him he came to the server looking like that and went back to making plans for taking his land back as Techno stood there and tried to comprehend the </span>
  <em>
    <span>how</span>
  </em>
  <span>).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Almost half an hour later, as he quietly came back into himself and felt the shock finally leave his body, Techno sat down in the wet dirt and tried to understand what had happened. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In all his life, Technoblade had never heard of a Cursed being able to go back to being human. It just wasn’t possible; as long as Cursed had existed (which was, since practically forever alongside players), they had been forced to make peace with their new reality and accept being not human anymore. Techno tugged at his left tusk, nervously thinking, as he threw from side to side a potato between his hands. How had Schlatt managed to become human?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sure, he still had his horns, and his pupils probably fucked his eyesight a lot, but...But at least he looked like a player, he no longer looked like a white goat who had managed to learn how to walk. It felt weird, looking at that human face, at the hair, the formal shoes, and trying to reconcile it with white fur, blue sweaters, black hooves. It was just too strange, too alien. His hair was short and messy, not even vaguely resembling the tidy fur he was used to; the horns were no longer clipped and dulled, instead long and sharp; even his tail was different! It was shorter, almost a fraction of what he remembered it to be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Was it even the same Schlatt he remembered? The funny guy with always a joke in his lips, the guy who would show him shops who adjusted clothes for Cursed, the same guy who helped him felt comfortable in his own skin, after years of anger and frustration?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He… He hadn’t even acted like the Schlatt he knew. No jokes, no quips, just a cold demeaning exterior. A piercing glare, a smile too sharp; No, this wasn’t what Schlatt was supposed to be like. He hadn’t even looked at him when he entered the room, besides a glance before going back to talking to Will.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Maybe it was just an impostor, an Other trying to occupy his place and play pretend. But the laugh had felt real, the voice who mocked Wilbur the same as the one who talked to him long into the night about that asshole who had tried to trip him because he was a “pig”.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno stared at his hands, watching the four fingers move and flex gently, the nail (or hoove, maybe, but today wasn’t the day Techno felt he knew what he was) dully reflecting the light from the torches nearby. He touched his ears, feeling them twitch slightly as he examined them; he could feel his nose and tail move as he tensed and untensed. It felt weird, feeling this alienated from his body for the first time in years. It was almost like he was a teenager again, waking up as a pig, no longer having hair or fingers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He gulped, closing his eyes uneasy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He missed being human, he missed it so fucking much. Swords were hard to handle, all his clothes had to be modified to fit him, everywhere he went he was stared at. He missed having hair, he missed not having to put so much thought into speaking so his tusk wouldn’t get in the way of the words, he missed people not being scared of him when entering a room, of people flinching when looking him into his dead eyes. He missed not having to himself so carefully when being around others, not worrying about how easily he could damage others when not being mindful of his own strength.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He eyed the communicator he received when he joined the SMP, watching the black screen in apprehension.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He could probably ask Schlatt about this, he doubted the goat (...ex-goat?) would deny him the knowledge, especially considering the history they shared. The hours lamenting the fact they were now animals, the days spent searching for shops accessible for them and that could accommodate them, the afternoons together as Schlatt taught him tricks of how to move and act, helping him feel more comfortable than ever in his life.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sure, Schlatt was the enemy right now and his brothers (in all but blood) would probably understand but, he was here for his brothers right now. Especially since Phil had sent him ahead, to check on Will and Tommy and make sure they weren’t getting into any trouble. But… The opportunity was so close, he could practically taste it. Maybe he could convince Schlatt to leave Will and Tommy in peace? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Groaning, he threw himself back, splayed on the dirt between the potato crop, and looked up and the stony ceiling. What to do, what to do… There were just so many options? Should he take the chance? Should he wait?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He raised his head slightly as he felt footsteps approach him. He wasn’t even surprised at the fact that Dream was in the entrance of his small farm, he didn't even wonder how he managed to find them or why he would be there. Techno just watched the masked guy enter, carefully stepping around his crops, and groaned miserably, throwing an arm over his eyes as he continued to think about his options.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He heard the other slowly sit down and quickly glanced at him, checking to see if he was gonna get killed or something, but went back to balancing options when he saw the other wasn’t even armed. (Cringe, he thought privately but didn't dare to voice in case Dream had a weapon in his inventory and was waiting for him to talk so he could spectacularly cut him off). Techno waited in silence, because if there was one thing he could trust it was that Dream couldn’t stand silence. Give him some time and he’ll crack open, he thought disinterested, uncovering one eye and looking at the little crevices in the stone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, not even a ‘Hello Dream it is very good to see you again, how have you been?’” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno shrugged from his position on the floor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, come on now! After all the work I did to get here without anyone following, not even a little ‘How?’, nothing, nothing at all?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh fuck you Techno”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pig snickered, taking his arm off his face and glancing at the other, who, if he guesses correctly from his posture, was pouting a lot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, hello Dream”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finally, some sort of acknowledgment!” He threw his arms in the air in mock anger but fell apart as soon as he saw Techno staring deadpan at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If you come for a rematch, I’m afraid I am too busy farming potatoes,” He said, lazily pointing at the stone hoe that was resting against the walls.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pfft, wouldn’t you like a rematch potato pig” Dream scoffed, you could practically feel him rolling his eyes “Nah, came around to check on you mostly. Thought SMPs weren’t your thing exactly”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hmm, yeah but you know, family duty calls”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Didn’t think you would show up honestly. You didn’t the last war nor when Schlatt came to visit”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nobody told me until it had already happened”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You would have shown up if you had known, then?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“....Perhaps”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dream laughed, shaking his head and leaned against the walls as he looked towards him. This felt… relaxing, it was hard to feel threatened by the same man he has seen laugh until crying over the most inane jokes. It was hard to conceive this was the same man who had terrorized Wilbur and Tommy to death just a few weeks ago. The light of the torch flickered over the small cave, the water reflecting the light over his eyes, as dream’s enchanted armour shimmered in the dark.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What brings you here, dream? I doubt you came here to help Tommy and Will get L’manberg back”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Came here to check on you, been a long time since we saw each other”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We saw each other like, like last week in the tournament”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, and we were both super focused into trying to win the competition” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, fair point” Techno inclined his head towards the other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How are you holding up? You don’t look too good if I may be honest”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Eh…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Techno you look like shit man! Admit it!” Dream teased, sighing and looked at him “What's up?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno scowled and sighed. Well, a second opinion would never hurt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dream… Uh…” Shit, this was more difficult than he thought it to be “If you had an opportunity to… to get like, what you most desired, would you take it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“W-What?! Pfft, Obviously I would take it if it means getting what I most want” Dream laughed him off.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But… But how far would you go, though?... For it, I mean… I mean, if it means getting back that one thing you never thought to get back, that one thing you had given up on, what could practically make your life easier… Would you take it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dream looked at him confused, but Techno kept his silence, knowing he could never truly describe what he felt. You had to live through it to understand it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I mean, yes? If the reward is bigger than the risk then for sure, I would gladly take it…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...Dream?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, techno?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You… You all are friends, right? Here, I mean, no matter what right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“... Yeah, we are all friends? Wha-Why are you asking though?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pig sighed, slowly standing up and dusting his pants, trying to ignore how Dream slightly tensed as he stood to his full height. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Doesn’t matter. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have people to train” He turned around and left the cave, lowering his head to not crash into the ceiling of the small corridor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, techno…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good luck”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno smiled slightly and nodded, getting out into the big ravine that Pogtopia was. Taking out his communicator, he wavered before sending a quick message.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You whisper to Jschlatt: Hey, can we talk?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Jschlatt whispers to you: Sure</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno crouched in the tree’s branch, trying to see if anyone else was around. He had already done a lap around the zone and hadn't caught anyone besides Schlatt, who was waiting in the small clearing, but he wanted to make sure they both were alone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After checking, he sighed and dropped from the branch into the floor, approaching the other who was standing there without moving; he had probably heard him while he was checking the perimeter but it didn’t matter, he was sure Schlatt would appreciate the security of privacy for this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The gravel crunched under his boots, as he evaded the twigs that littered the floor. Soon he stood face to face with who he once considered a mentor, one of his best friends. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So… You said you wanted to talk-” Schlatt tried to say with humor and cold eyes looking straight at him before he interrupted him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Schlatt, don’t. Just… Don’t, we both know why we are here tonight”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The guy paused, the smile leaving his face, and sighed, leaning against a tree. “Well… What do you want to know first?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What happened to you? You just… Dropped off the face of the earth without so much as a goodbye and next time I see you, you are human again… It, it shouldn’t be possible. How did you do it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I see, straight for the kill heh?” Schlatt looked up, expression emotionless as he seemed to think about his answer “Do you remember the last months before I left?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How could I? You stopped answering all texts… Everyone was worried about you”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, not my brightest moment I got to admit… Do you, do you remember that little project I mentioned to you, that I was working on?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I was visiting a bar one night, you know me, I am not exactly a good law-abiding citizen… Anyways, I was at this bar and I heard a couple of drunk guys talking, typical shit, you know? I wouldn’t have bothered with them but then I heard them talking about this little rumor… They said that there was this one girl who was capable of shapeshifting. And I was like, sure doesn’t sound that impressive… but then the guys said that the gal could only change between human and this, like, giant wolf thing.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Like a werewolf?” Techno interrupted him, confused as to where this was leading. Schlatt rolled his eyes and just continued talking, ignoring the comment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Anyways, drunk me decided to check this girl out and later, sober me decided ‘Hey! This is a good idea!’. Would at least make an interesting story, you know? So, I got to work. I managed to track her down to this little server after a few weeks, really insecure to be honest, didn’t have a whitelist or an actual admin. And, hear this, the girl was a Cursed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was this like, wolf-like Cursed and at first, I thought the guys at the bar were just talking shit… And then I saw her, and I kid you not, just… change into a human! Like, sure, her eyes were kinda weird and she had way too sharp canines for a player, but she looked human! She had fingers, a face, hair, everything! She wasn’t a shifter, she was an actual goddamn Cursed, she had the same aura as you and me and Traves and everyone else has!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>I approached her and asked how she did it, she refused to tell me at first… Got kicked out of the server a few times, her friends were kinda scary, to be honest. But eventually, I don’t know if the girl got worn down or she just took pity on me, but she snuck me into the server and hide me in her base and just… told me how”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Schlatt smiled and, reaching into the inside pocket of his suit, he procured a golden apple. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Well, Techno thought it was a golden apple; but it was shining, way more than an enchanted would do, and if he looked at it directly too much his head started to hurt. The gold shimmered between yellow and a dark red from time to time, looking almost as if it was something alive.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This” Schlatt shook the thing “Is how I managed to become human. It works almost completely, although you keep some of the traits of your Curse”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno looked at the apple, apprehension gripping his chest so tight he feared he would die. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How… How does it work?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Someone who has one of these has to give you half of their apple. You eat the half and, ta-da! You are human again! Of course, the person who gives you half of their apple will lose some of their power” Schlatt smiled tightly, the smile looking almost like a sneer in the darkness of the clearing. Techno stared at him and hesitated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...No secondary effects?” At Schlatt slight grimace he nodded “...Too bad effects?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...Kind of. It depends on the price the apple ask of you”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Price?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. A Cursed can’t just simply go back to normal, it’s got to be an equivalent exchange”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What was the girl’s price?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Every once and a while she will forget everything, absolutely everything. Her’s kinda fucked up since she apparently tried to cheat, so she also randomly transforms back into a Cursed”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oof, that… That sounds awful” Schlatt snickered a little.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s what you get for trying to cheat” Techno frowned, and opened his mouth to ask Schlatt what his price was but was rudely interrupted (the other probably knew what he was about to ask and tried to change the subject, and the pig couldn’t fault him, to be honest). “Tell me Techno, would </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> like to be human again?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That's why you came, didn’t you? Doubt you would have been so eager to meet if it wasn’t for this reason, pig” Techno frowned, looking doubtful </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You would do it? You would give me half of your apple?” He looked at Schlatt hopeful, his heart almost beating out of his chest.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“For a price, of course”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?! A price?!” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course, everything has a price, you know?” Schlatt smiled coldly, almost like relinquishing in Techno’s shock.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What…” The Cursed gulped, hesitantly “What would your price be?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, nothing big nothing big… Just… A little of information”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Information?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Every rebellion needs a spy between their midst Technoblade”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stared in thinly veiled shock at the other, the denial rising hot from his chest but he paused. He hated how much he doubted in saying no, but this was a really tempting offer; he desperately wanted to be human again, but he wasn’t sure how much he was willing to sacrifice for it. What price would he pay? Would it outweigh the pros of being back to normal? And what about Wilbur and Tommy? They were devastated by the fact that they had lost the elections and were exiled, and Techno wasn’t sure if they would tolerate his betrayal. If he betrayed them, would they even survive this? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew they all were friends on the server but… Here things just seemed so much real. He wasn’t sure he trusted the opposing side in not fucking his best friends over. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I… I’m not sure-” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Come on Techno, pal! What do you have to lose? Aren’t you tired of Tommy and Wilbur?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He froze, looking back at Schlatt, as he slowly connected the points. He glanced at the “apple”, watching it move, almost like if it… almost like if it was beating. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought, looking between the “apple” and the pocket of which it came, that was right over where Schlatt’s heart was supposed to be, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh indeed</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you say, Technoblade? Don’t you want to be normal again?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Wilbur startles awake abruptly, instantly gripping the iron sword that's beside him in the bed; he is halfway getting out of bed before he stops to yawn and blinks confused, watching to see what could have woken him up. He hears Tommy sleeping near him, curled against the wall and besides one of the furnaces, almost clinging to it trying to seek some sort of warmth. The ravine is humid and cold, and Wilbur squints his eyes against the shadows trying to see if something is hiding in the dark.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He relaxes as he sees a familiar figure in the hallway, slowly unclasping a dark red cape. Wilbur yawns, lowering his sword as silently as possible and leaving it on the floor, stretching to try to take away the incoming cramps he got from sleeping on the floor all twisted against the stairs. The blade clunks loudly against the stony, the sound resonating all around the empty ravine, causing him to wince; a quick glance assures him that Tommy is still asleep but he sees from the corner of his eye Techno jumps slightly at the young, turning around to stare at him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The brit frowns as he takes techno appearance in, the white puffy shirt totally dirty with mud and stray twigs entangled in it. His ears are hanging very low, a clear sign for him of the pig’s exhaustion. If he strains he’s sure he can hear water dripping from techno’s boots and trousers. In a short sentence, Techno looks like shit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You okay?” He whispers, not wanting to wake Tommy up, not after the grueling day they just had. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno just nods, taking off his gloves and boots slowly, clearly tired and not wanting to talk. It's justified, thinks Will as he gets up, today has been a very busy day and he’s sure all of Pogtopia needs some rest. He waits for techno to be done and then silently gestures back to Tommy, hoping the other will get the signal and help him carry the teenager up the stairs to the bed they have.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno frowns and shakes his head, before opening a chest and taking out a bunch of materials. Puzzled, Will watches as the pig strides towards them and starts covering the floor with soft wool and some haste made blankets. Opening his mouth, understanding what the other wanted to go, Will turned and slowly opened the furnace, filling it with coal and setting it on fire, relaxing as the cold started to be chased away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Once he sees the other is finished, he shakes lightly Tommy, signaling him to move towards the wool so he can be more comfortable. The teenager grunts, half asleep and half awake, and just rolls until he is on the wool and falls asleep again almost immediately. Huffing, Will grabs some of the blankets that Techno is trying to accommodate in the small corner they have, and settles himself down beside Tommy, yawning as he slowly gets comfortable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He watches Techno clean up what is around them, looking mildly uncomfortable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You sure you are okay?” Techno pauses in the middle of closing the chest and nods slowly, shuffling towards him as his hooves click against the stone. The pig just lets himself fall into the wool, a small “oof” escaping him as he falls face-first into the soft material.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don't worry Techno, although it doesn’t look like it we will dethrone Schlatt” Techno moved his head slightly, peering at him. There, surrounded by wool and only on his undershirt and trousers, the other looks oddly vulnerable. Without his cape or crown, he looks more tired, more mortal. With a twist, Will suddenly remembers that this is probably the first time Techno has seen Schlatt in </span>
  <em>
    <span>months</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “We will rebel against his government and you will kick his ass for going MIA for like, half a year”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Techno humans, smiling “Yeah... I guess that sounds like a plan”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Will nods and turns around, falling asleep quickly. If he hears a communicator make noise or see a small golden glint, he doesn’t pay it any attention.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tomorrow everything will change, he is sure.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the better… Or the worse</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>BOY WAS THIS A RIDE! I got the inspiration from a daydream like 2 days ago around 2 in the morning and i have only been writing this in the night.<br/>The ending is very open, as if Techno accepted being a traitor and now has a golden apple, or techno declining, and schlatt hounding him by messages to make him accept bc he may not show it but schaltt rlly want his friend back! It's honestly open for interpretation, so please let me know your thoughts on the comments! Comments and kudos feed my soul and make me go absolutely unhinged, so please spare a comment for this poor author.<br/>Now, onto the lore if you didn't quite catch it:<br/>This is like a IRL minecraft, first of all.<br/>Everyone is a player, and practically all players are humans (or mostly human). It is very rare for a player to not have basic human anatomy (face, fingers, hair, y'know it). There are several types of players, and players can have their own power (like shapeshifters, mermaid or smthing like that; as always as it remains a vaguely humanoid form).<br/>Now, Cursed is the name that a specific type of player receives. A Cursed is a player who got cursed (duh) into another form, permanently. It can happen because a witch got mad at you, you messed around the wrong galactic alphabet, a freaky accident with some mobs or even born like one! What separates Cursed from normal players is that A) they do not have ANY and i mean, ANY human-related like charasteristics. They can be animals that like, talk and walk on two legs (or four), something that looks like an angel (actual angels, you know, the ones with like a billion eyes and rings and vaguely shaped wings). And B) They normally have a superior strength than normal players.<br/>Cursed can never go back to being human, it is practically impossible. If you get transformed into a Cursed, that's It. No more human time for you!</p><p>The "golden apples" are a reference to the gapples of the video of slimecicle with schlatt of the natural disasters. The "golden apples" are not actually apples? They are vaguely shaped like an apple, but if you stare at it, you slowly start to notice it never even resembled an apple in the first place... Freaky! The Golden Apples let a Cursed transform into a human again but normally it has a very large price. For Schlatt, it took away his compasion/kindness/what he had of morality/ability to have friends or mantain friendships. It takes what you most value, or what's super important to you. (For Schlatt his friends were super important, and the golden apples took the ability to have friendships away from him which sucks for him i guess).<br/>A "cured" Cursed can help another Cursed but at the cost of their own cure. Since they need to give away half of the "golden apple", the cure stops halway stopping. So for example, if Schlatt gave half of his apple to Techno, his feet would revert back to hooves and he would start to slowly get white fur in his skin). The "efectiviness" of the golden apples decreases the longer the chain of sharing goes. So, if schlatt kept his horns and pupils (alongside blackish fingernails) then techno would keep his tusk, pig ears probably, his skin would keep the pinkish tint of a pig skin and so on).</p><p> </p><p>If you want me to like, expand more on this kind of lore shoot me a msg @Vrillru on twt or Krikryr on Tumblr. Or comment ur essay/ideas here and ill scream with you about them!</p><p>I have more wips of the dream smp in the backburner so maybe ill post more fics in the future, so like, stay tuned? </p><p>Hope u enjoyed this one-shot!~</p></blockquote></div></div>
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